$2 a day challenge - what my daughter learned

Hello everyone!

Have had a busy few days! I'm enjoying eating a variety of food again and have been feeling so grateful for having such a wonderful life.

I should mention that I was invited to Parliament House yesterday to have morning tea with the team members from Live Below the Line, Global Poverty, Oaktree Foundation and several Members of Parliament. I had a wonderful time learning a bit more about the people behind this great campaign.

Some of the LBTL team with some of the MPs who are doing/did the challenge.

On the day of the morning tea, my 8 year old daughter also finished her speech for her first public speaking competition! She agreed for me to blog it today with the caveat: "..but make sure you don't use my full name Mum!" Ah, so proud of my cybersafe girl. :)

So here is her speech:

"Hi my name is........... and I will talk about meal times at my house.

When I eat dinner, I have all sorts of food. But on 16 to 20 May, my mum didn't have all sorts of food. She only ate pasta, sweet potatoes, cheese and peanuts. My mum ate this because she was doing the Live Below the Line Challenge.

The Live Below the Line Challenge is a way of teaching people how poor people live. My mum could only spend $2 a day for all her food and drink.

I thought her food wasn't enough. I had big meals that would fill me up.

During meal times, I learned that poor people don't have enough food or money. They have to spend $2 a day for not only their food but for everything that they have. Some of them also don't have homes, money, food and drink. Sometimes, they sleep in clothing bins.

Now that I know about this, this is what I think about my meals: filling, enjoyable and great.

Now that the Live Below the Line Challenge is over, our meal times are back to normal.

I feel sorry for the poor people and I feel happy with my life."

Please wish her luck for her first public speech!

I hope you are all well and having a good week.

P.S. I've learned its not too late to do the challenge or if you can't do the challenge, then you may want to think about sponsoring me!

MIDNIGHT! I've finished the $2 a day challenge!

Hi everyone!

Here I am posting after 2 bowls of cereal (scoffed in 8 mins). I am a happy camper. The Living Below the Line Challenge was HARD and I'm still processing much of what I've learned over the last 5 days.

My lasting impression here is that, what I went through was just a tiny inkling of what people in extreme poverty must face every day of their lives. As one other blogger wrote in the LBTL site - what we went through was not hardship - its just not eating much.

And he's right. I didn't *really* go through the ordeal of only having the purchasing power of $2 a day. What I had was the purchasing power of $2 for food and drink. And I did that by choice. I didn't have to give up my comfortable house, with heating (I'd hate to think how those in poverty are coping this winter - its bloody cold here in the ONC*). I didn't have to give up electricity, running (and clean) water and my car.

What's more, I continue to have the support of my family and friends. I continue to work in my great job with good conditions and one that gives me a great income.

So what did I learn? A tiny inkling of how far my world is to those in extreme poverty.

A big big thank you to all of those people who have sponsored me and supported me during this challenge. You guys are wonderful.

I wish you all a great weekend.

Day 4: $2 a day challenge. Almost there!

Hi everyone!

Yay, only 1 more day to go! I'm at the stage now where I'm planning what I'll be having to eat after this challenge is over. I'm planning on a midnight snack on Friday night, a big brekkie on Saturday and then dinner out on Saturday night. I. CAN'T. WAIT.

Aside from [tasty and varied] food, the other thing I miss is the social aspects that surrounds food. I've had to turn down many a coffee and lunch invite this week. I've missed having people over for dinner.

And it feels...isolating. It reminds me a little of when I first stopped shopping during my year of not buying brand new. Then I realised that shopping was one of the ways I used to connect with people.

Now I'm realising that food plays a big part with how I connect with people now.

Oh and my daughter has entered a public speaking competition and she's decided to do her 3 minute speech on what I've been doing! She wants to talk about the differences between her meals and mine, why I am living on $2 a day for food, and what's she's learned about extreme poverty from this. I'll ask her permission to post her speech on this blog.

Anyway, this is just a short update. I've just finished work and I'm really tired.

I hope you are all well.

$2 a day challenge - impact on my family - day 3

Hi everyone!

YAY! I'm halfway there. I'll be honest, out of all my consumption challenges, I am not enjoying this at all. $2 a day means no choice. I thought I'd be able to be creative with this challenge but...nup...."creative" is more like "making do" and actually leaning more towards "have to".

I have to have my (bland) food...over and over again.

I worry about whether my portions will be enough.

I have to make do when I get my portions wrong.

Last night, I worked late. At around 11pm, I decided I needed to have a snack. So I had a small snack...and now I'm worried that I will miss out on a meal portion for the last day. While my food is not exactly the kind of food I'd jump hoops for, it is my ONLY food. I do need to eat.

My children have been watching me while I've been going through this challenge. We've been talking about what I'm doing and what poverty is like. They're good conversations to have.

This challenge has also affected us in another way. See, I have always let my kids decide how much they eat. This has always worked for us. I'm a great believer that everyone is born innately knowing how to regulate themselves - especially when it comes to their own bodies. I believe that its long term exposure to negative messages in one's environment that leads us to have a diminished capacity to self-regulate.

My children barely have any leftovers...having said that, there have been 2 occasions now when my kids changed their minds and decided they didn't want all of the 2nd (or 3rd) helping of their meal. And so they have a little bit left - not enough for a meal but definitely not a scraped clean plate....and it hurts me watching them put that little bit in the bin.

Because, they are eating nutritious (and much tastier) food than me.

For the first time ever, I asked them to finish their food. They refused with that certainty people have when they know they really truly have had enough. I'm glad they can refuse but it still hurts. For the first time, I even used the line:

"Do you know how many people out there are starving?!!"

I never understood that line before...and I doubt my kids understand it now. But I think as a result of this challenge, I'm starting to get a tiny inkling of what that means.

Still, all of our conversations as a result of this challenge has had an effect. Today as we were driving home, my son suddenly says, "Mum, I'm going to give money for your challenge because I want to help the poor people."

And so I'm proud to say, my children both gave a little of their pocket money towards the Global Poverty Project.

I'm very proud to be their mum.

I hope you are all well.

Day 2 ($2 a day challenge)

Hi everyone!

Firstly, huge huge thank you for your fantastic comments in my last post. You are right, so many people do fall through the cracks. Its scary to think that in this wealthy country of ours, there are people who are living on $2 a day. I am finding this challenge difficult and I'm only applying it to food - I can not even imagine what it would be like to have to apply it to everything.

Today, I had my first meal that had butter.

Mmm...butter, how I love you. (And I never realised! I'm sorry I take you for granted.)

I had roasted sweet potatoes with butter and peanuts and oh my goodness how much of a difference does butter make?! I loved it so much that I've decided to cook the rest of my sweet potatoes the same way (so yes, I've used up all 4 tabs of butter in one hit by cooking with it).

Anyway, despite my blah of a first day, I actually had a wonderful night's sleep. I guess no caffeine can do that to you. So I woke up feeling refreshed...and hungry...but not looking forward to eating (because my food was so bland).

Today, I've realised how much caffeine affects my life. Aside from a wonderful night's sleep, I find I'm now hungry for brekkie. Confession time - I very rarely eat breakfast. I have 2 cups of coffee and that's it for me and I don't get hungry until around 12:30pm. I've heard that caffeine is an appetite suppressant, but never thought too much about it 'cause well....I eat a lot for someone my size. Without those cups of coffee, I find myself devouring my (bland) soup for brekkie and gulping warm water like its going out of fashion. Today, I started to get hungry again at 11am, and so I drank 1 glass of my cola. And voila - hunger was gone until 12:30pm. Weird but not weird. I'm just blown away by how strong an appetite suppressant it is!

I'm finding that with this challenge, worry is a big part of my life. I worry that I may have eaten too big a portion and won't have enough for the next meal. I worry that I am not able to think as fast or as clearly as I used to. I worry that I am not moving as quickly as I am used to. Its an awful thing having to worry like this.

On the other hand, I am feeling sooooo grateful. I am grateful that this is only a 5 day thing. I am grateful for the life that I have. I am grateful for my family and friends and the support that they provide. I am grateful for working in a supportive environment. I am grateful for my job and the stable income that it brings. I am grateful for the choices that I have - including the choice to live simply. I am grateful that "worry" is not a big part of my normal life.

My family and me

Anyway, this is going to be another short blog post. I have work to do tonight (now that the kids are in bed) so I best get to it.

If you would like to donate towards addressing global poverty, you can sponsor me by going to:

http://www.livebelowtheline.org.au/eilleene

"No thank you" & what the $2 means ($2 a day challenge)

Hi everyone!

Today I woke up and the first thought that went through my head was: "I can't have a coffee."

The second thought that went through my head was: "Is there any point in getting up?"

Coffee....how I miss you.

Today, I was surprised how much I had to say "no, thank you." Today, it felt like so many people offered me coffee, food, or even a bit of their food ("would you like a chip?"). And over and over again, I said "No thank you." The purpose of this challenge is for me to gain a better awareness of what it means to be poor. But I have to say, I feel very privileged to have such generous people around me.

I'm finding myself worried about the week ahead. My food is...okay. Its not bad but its not great.

But I digress. The other point of this post was for me to explain the $2 in the Live Below the Line Challenge. The $2 a day is the Australian dollar equivalent of the purchasing power of those who are in extreme poverty all over the world. So basically, if someone living in Australia was in extreme poverty, they would be able to buy Australian goods to the value of $2 a day. Its NOT AUD$2 being used to buy goods in, say, the Philippines (my birth country).

So this challenge is really driving home to me how dire the consequences are for those who are living in extreme poverty. $2 worth of purchasing power is not a lot. Especially since it would apply to all living expenses - not just food. In a way, this challenge has made it "easy" for those of us who are used to wealth (and we are wealthy in comparison).

I wonder if there are people in Australia in extreme poverty? After all, we have a welfare system, don't we? Then I think of all the "hoops" one has to go through to access this welfare system....do people get missed?

Anyway, I'm suffering very much from caffeine withdrawals so I will leave it here.

I hope you are all well.

PS Just in case you would like to sponsor me during my week, you can do so by going to my Live Below the Line challenge page on: http://livebelowtheline.org.au/eilleene

Groceries - OMFG ($2 a day challenge)

Hello everyone!

Firstly, a big thank you for all of you who commented on my last post. I am quite nervous about this so your support means a lot to me. I also blogged a bit about why I am doing this challenge in my Live Below The Line page. Long term readers here would know that children's rights are very very important to me. Extreme poverty is the very enemy of children's rights. As Von said in my last post - extreme poverty creates a market for the exploitation and abuse of children.

But back to the original purpose of this post....

So there I was thinking I had the whole weekend to prepare for this but...as usual, my busy life has gotten in the way. A few things have cropped up which meant that I was out and about for much of yesterday and for much of today....which meant that I didn't have time to shop around carefully to get the best amount I can out of my $10 worth of groceries.

So last night, in between errands, I ducked over to Woolworths and bought my groceries...only to find that due to the lateness of the hour, most of the things I wanted were not there and I had to come up with a new plan on the spot! AUGH!

Instead, this is what I ended up with:

O.M.G. 4 ingredients and 1 drink = $9.61. Which means I still have 40c to spare (I paid cash so I can get the 1c back). I'm thinking of buying those little butter packet things at the local work canteen for 10c each (which would make 4 dollops of butter) tomorrow.

So first observations:

1. With a $10 budget (and no real plan in place), I had to buy things that were not value for money. For example: Pumpkin was 92 cents a kilo but the smallest pumpkin there (yes I was weighing them) was 6 kilos. That would take too much out of my budget. So I ended up buying sweet potato which was $2.20 a kilo but I could get smaller portions so I didn't have to use up so much of my budget.

2. Very tempting to suddenly consume against my values!! First time I've had this dilemma in years! Caged eggs were only $2.10 for a dozen!! I haven't looked at caged eggs for years so I had forgotten how cheap they were....so I picked up one....then put it back....then circled the aisle and picked it up again....then put it back. And in the end decided rather than eggs I'll go cheese instead.

3. Very tempting to go with an idea Owlfan had (inadvertently) put in my head - to buy in bulk as per normal and then just apportion some of it ending up with $10 worth. BUT then I realised that if I was truly living on $2 a day, then I would never be able to afford to buy in bulk and so technically I would be offering myself food for prices that people in extreme poverty would never get......so in a surge of optimism in the midst of my anxiety, I decided that this would be a great way to show my resilience and creativity with limited resources.

...okay, I'm looking at that picture again and I've realised that my optimism may have been delusional. I also don't know WHAT I was thinking by buying cola....actually, I know, in the midst of anxiety I suddenly craved for caffeine and convinced myself that I could not possible last 5 days without caffeine...hence the cola. *sigh*

So what can I do with pasta, peanuts, sweet potato, cottage cheese, butter and cola?

1. Baked sweet potato, pasta with peanuts - this won't be what I'm having tomorrow 'cause I don't have the butter yet. But it would be a spare meal.

2. Pasta and cheese - what I might have for lunch

3. Sweet potato soup - what I might have tomorrow for brekkie....um with the cola?

4. Sweet potato and cheese fritters - what I might have for dinner

My plan is to also snack on peanuts throughout the day.

*sigh* Let's see how we go. Wish me luck!

I'm going to survive on $2 a day for food and drink

Hello everyone!

Tried to blog about this yesterday but blogger was down (and had been down for awhile). I'm so glad its back! The experience of blogger being down was good though - when the choice to blog was taken away from me, I realised how much I really love blogging.

..and that makes a good intro on what I want to blog about today. Yesterday, I signed up for the Live Below the Line challenge. Starting this Monday 16 May, for 5 days, I will try to survive on only $2 a day for food and drink.

Now long term readers here would know that I am able to feed my family for under $100 a week. By living consciously and carefully, I have learned how to feed my family nutritiously for very little.

BUT that is a choice I make and the money I save from grocery budgeting is there for my family to enjoy.

The kids and me - happy and healthy

For those living in extreme poverty, they do not have the choices I have. They do not have the security my family and I enjoy in knowing that we will always have enough food on the table and a roof over our heads. There are $1.4 billion people worldwide who are living on the equivalent of AUD$2 day.

Now I don't know about you, but when I first heard this figure of $2 a day, I thought "well, that's not too bad - $2 can buy quite a bit in most developing countries." But through this project, I've learned that that is not true at all. $2 a day is what these people live on for EVERYTHING - food, shelter, transport and health.

And every research I have read tell me that the poorer one is, the more health problems they have and the harder it is to maintain shelter - let alone food.

I can not relate to that way of living. It is completely out of my frame of reference. I can only imagine the heartbreak these people face in knowing that their children will most likely live the same they do and face the same problems.

So I am going to try and help a very worthy project - during my week of living on $2 a day for food and drink, I am going to try and raise $500 for the Global Poverty Project.

In the meantime, with only 2 days to go before I start, I have to say, I am savouring all my food and drink choices at the moment. I am so going to miss my coffee......

Wish me luck!

P.S. No my children are not going to join me on this one (though they want to). They are too young. I will be shopping and cooking for them as per normal. Tomorrow, I will pre-make as much of my meals as possible so I eat my $2 meal(s) with my kids.

P.P.S. No I will not eat my children's leftovers (not that they have leftovers anyway). Nor will I eat out of existing food in my pantry or eat at friends/workmates/my mum's place(s). That defeats the purpose of this exercise.

P.P.P.S Yes I will blog tomorrow about what I buy and cook for my week.

P.P.P.P.S I would really really appreciate it if you could sponsor me during my week! Go to here: http://www.livebelowtheline.org.au/eilleene to see how I'm going!

New winter wardrobe - dressed by op shop

Hello everyone!

Well, it looks like I'm finally coming to terms with the fact that my life as a working sole parent will always mean that I will always be busy - and the times when I'm not busy, I am spending outdoors....what this means for blogging? Well, I guess, it just means that my blogging will always be sporadic. I could give it up...but I don't want to. I still enjoy blogging (when I get to it) so I will continue haphazardly posting.

Anyway, its getting colder and colder here in the ONC*. I've been on a bit of an op shop splurge to update my winter wardrobe. I hadn't bought winter clothes since...well, since I bought this cape from the op shop back in 2007. Thought I'd show off some of my finds:

Grey wool vest (St Vinnies) $7; Light green jumper (love the detail at the front of it - Salvos) half price at $2; Grey corduroy pants (Salvos, also at half price) $2; grey shoes (bought in 2007 - Salvos) $5; belt (free - Salvos) - Total cost - $16

Coat (this is so gorgeous and warm - St Vinnies $20); Scarf (from my daughter's wardrobe and was a gift); Cream pants (Trash and Treasure $1); Brown top (Trash and Treasure $1); Bronze boots (these look like they've never been worn - St Vinnies $25). Total cost = $46

Oh and here's a photo without the coat and scarf:

Pleather (aka polyester made to look like leather) jacket (St Vinnies) $15; Blue top (Trash and Treasure) $1; White pants (Trash and Treasure) $1); Black boots (bought last year St Vinnies) $15. Total cost = $32

And here's photo without the coat:


Can't see the boots but its here in this pic:
Blue top (Trash and Treasure) $1; Black skinny pants (Salvos) $5. Total cost = $6

Oh and you must see the detail on this blue shirt:

So there you go a completely new winter wardrobe for $100!! Not bad. I love not just having "new" clothes but also getting those clothes at 0 cost to the environment and helping charities at the same time.

Anyway, what about you? Have you bought anything from the op shop recently to update your winter or (if in northern hemisphere) summer wardrobe? Care to share and blog about it?

I think the more we normalise buying second hand, the better!

Hope you are all well.

*ONC = Our Nation's Capital